There is something quietly luxurious about arriving early enough to sit in an airport lounge and simply pause.
This morning, before my flight, I spent time in the Qantas Business Lounge in Sydney, with access included in my redeemed business class ticket. And I have to say, it set the tone for the day in the best possible way.
The atmosphere is what stands out first.
A low hum of conversation. People largely keeping to themselves. A few on phones, others reading or working. No chaos, no urgency. Just a sense of calm before movement. Bright and airy, it is a nice relaxed space.
Then there is the food.
A noticeable step up from what you would expect outside the lounge or even Qantas’s normal lounge. Fresh salads, scrambled eggs, gluten free sausages, baked beans, and a well stocked juicing station. Good coffee, hot drinks, and enough variety to feel like you have options without it being overwhelming.
It is not extravagant, but it is thoughtful.
One detail I always find slightly amusing is the absence of alcohol before midday. A consistent rule in Qantas lounges. And yet, when you consider how many travellers are crossing time zones, for some people it is midday. Or later.
Still, there is something refreshing about starting the day without it.
There are three showers for those in transit or wanting to refresh.
What the lounge really offers is space. Space to gather yourself, reset, and ease into the journey ahead. And in today’s world, that might be the most valuable luxury of all.
Sydney does festivals, concerts and sporting events! When the city opens its heart to wine, it becomes an extraordinary experience ; a feast for the senses, where the Harbour sparkles, the Opera House glows, and some of the best of Australian vineyards pour their stories by the glass.
Welcome to the Sydney Cellar Door; a FUN & vibrant gathering along The Rocks, where heritage and innovation meet along side the water of Circular Quay.
Where Wine Meets the Water
There’s something intoxicating about sipping fine wine by the sea. At the Sydney Wineries Festival, the harbour breeze carries the perfume of summer, the clink of crystal (actually plastic) glasses blends with the rhythm of buskers in The Rocks, and the skyline creates a stage that even Bordeaux or Tuscany would envy.
The event sprawls infront of the Museum of Contemporary Art, transforming the foreshore into a sensory playground. Cellar doors pop up along the grass, each offering a taste of NSW wines: Orange, Mudgee, Port Macquarie, the Hunter and more. It is some of Australia’s BEST for sure!
This isn’t just a tasting. It’s a journey through the terroirs of NSW, without ever leaving the Quay.
A Showcase of Australia’s Finest
From the crisp mineral whites of De Beaurepaire to the refined méthode traditionnelle sparklings of Cassegrain, and the robust, soulful reds of Glandore, the festival highlights the incredible breadth of Australian winemaking.
You’ll find:
Cool-climate Chardonnay from Orange and Tumbarumba
Elegant Pinot Noir from De Beaurepaire
Earthy, complex Shiraz from the Hunter wineries
Vibrant Tempranillo, Fiano, and Nebbiolo from the new-wave innovators redefining Australian wine! Giddy UP
Each stall tells a story. One of the things I love most about a wine festival is getting to “know” the wine maker!
Each pour holds a philosophy about land, the patience and the passion. The conversations are as rich as the vintages.
The Rocks: Where Heritage Meets the Modern Palate
Wandering The Rocks during festival weekend feels like walking through a living gallery. The mix of old-world charm and new-world creativity mirrors the evolution of Australian wine itself.
This is wine culture at its most joyful, inclusive and alive.
The Art of the pour
What sets the Sydney Wineries Festival apart isn’t just the setting , it’s the curation. The festival celebrates wine as art ; every varietal, a palette; every vineyard, a brushstroke. Winemakers aren’t just pouring drinks; they’re sharing their craft, their failures, their triumphs. You leave not just with your palate expanded, but your heart warmed.
Some I have never heard of and kudos to Cassegrain for exploring (and nailing) incredible blends. Please explore their incredible blends as they are smooth and eclectic.
It’s also a moment to reflect on sustainability. the quiet revolution taking place in vineyards across Australia. Many of the participating winemakers practise low-intervention, organic, or regenerative viticulture, proof that excellence and ethics can coexist beautifully. Many of the vineyards commited to low intervention such as Tractorless Winery with Melania and partner with their winery in the Southern Highlands.
A Toast to the City that Never Stops Creating
Sydney’s energy is contagious. One moment, you’re sampling a sparkling Semillon under the sails of the Opera House; the next, you’re dancing barefoot on the grass at First Fleet Park, holding a glass of Hunter Shiraz as the ferries glide past.
The festival caters for collectors, casual sippers, or just someone who loves being outdoors with good company, it’s impossible not to be swept up in the moment.
Raise Your Glass
Sydney’s Wineries Festival isn’t just an event. It’s a celebration of everything Australia does best; creativity, craftsmanship and conversations! All poured into one unforgettable weekend.
So next time it rolls around, mark the date, gather your people, and make your way to the Rocks in Sydney. Sam xx
PS: please support the above mentioned wineries. They are all local wineries meeting face to face with their customers.
Da Emilia alla Curtiglia found on the western side of Isle of Capri has some of the best food, drinks and sunsets on the island.
Run by classic Capri family from mum/dad, brothers, kids, cousins the place is warm and inviting. They were happy to pick me up from Villa San Michele and drop me back! I felt like royalty and was the service at the restaurant was similar.
Being gluten free can be hit and miss but their GF bruschetta was to die for!
Painting the sunset, drinking a delightful gin cocktail and eating the delicious olives and bruschetta will be some of my fondest memories of Isle of Capri this trip.
There is something wholesome and encompassing about eating fresh local produce that hasn’t been mass produced but lovingly grown by Nonno. Most of the smaller regions still (and staunchly) opt for traditional farming methods so the produce can be grown mostly pesticide and weedicide free. The depth of flavours embarrasses your average super market produce.
Equally the main dishes don’t disappoint. Lashes of local olive oil, fresh seafood and vibrant garnishes. If I didn’t have a trillion other reasons to go back to Capri, I would certainly go back for the Vognole from this restaurant and sunset. GF, delicious and home made with love.
Below one of the chefs and the very big kitchen able to cater for weddings, parties anything.
Click here to book. I would make this the destination and Isle of Capri the incidental.
San Sebastian in the Basque Region of Spain is a safe, beautiful part of the world. Renown for its gastronomic experiences, scalloped around a beautiful bay, there is something to find all year round.
Playa de La Concha
Whilst there are many options travellers often become overwhelmed and may miss the beauty and random joyful moments substituting it for stress.
This guide is to remove that stress so you can focus on the day and making this day, this destination on of the best in your lifetime.
This is a suggestion and any order can apply but understand, exercise is often better in the morning (then it is done). Food and wine feels less like a guilty pleasure when exercise has been done.
It is fun to wander around with no commitments and explore.
This is not to steal the serendipitous moments but to give you a fall back plan and one that will make you look in control not lost.
Walk to the Castle
You can see the castle here on top of the hill.
On the hill behind the old town is the Castle. Also known asCastillo of La Mota.
It is on top of the hill surrounded by a big park (Parque de Urgull).
The walk up can be dramatic and step (there are stairs leaving from behind the old town near the boat harbour, or gradual if you follow the boat harbour round past the aquarium and head up.
Just follow your nose – heading up is the main goal and you will find many little tracks.
There is a secret bar that is open in Summer.
Once up the top you will have amazing views of San Sebastian and the surrounding hills.
The view from the top
Alternative options to climbing the hill
These are some other walking options that are more flat terrain for those with injuries or unable to climb a hill.
If climbing is too tricky there are many walks around San Sebastian.
You can head to the left of the bay towards the south and find the amazing art sculptures of Spanish Artist Eduardo Chillida called Peine del Viento. Also a romantic beautiful spot.
Or you can walk around the Parque to Urgull and head over to Zurriola beach and head back along the river with the trees and shade.
2. Pinxos in the Old Part of Town
This gastronomic delight should be on every foodies global tour.
pinxos
Apparently San Sebastian has more michelin awarded restaurants than anywhere else in the world – but I think their pinxos are the stand out.
There are two famous cheese cake shops here.
Saint Telmos is my favourite has the best foie gras, blood pudding and iberian pork cheeks and grilled octapus.
Grilled octapus
Tintos (red wines) are awesome everywhere.
3. La Perla
This day spa (thermalogica) water treatment retreat is fantastic.
Right on the beach at Playa De La Concha, this magnificent building has great views from the far infared chairs. If you go between 130 – 4pm you can get a reduced rate for the two hours.
You can hire a towel and everyone has to wear the sexy blue cap.
La Perla
Hot steam room, hot sauna, multiple spa pools, relaxation zones and a cold plunge pool. Definitely worth it if you like water and day spas. No need for bookings unless during busy season. Click here for more information.
4. Santa Maria Cathedral
Have a pinxos in front of the cathedral
This iconic landmark is found in the old city.
It is 3 euros to pass through but worth it if this is the only church you are going to. There is another up near Saint Telmo which is equally breathtaking and of a different era.
5. Ferry trip
For a small fee (7 euros when we went) you can jump on the ferry and go to La Concha. Here you can disembark for exploring, or in summer swimming and a drink at the bar.
Otherwise you can stay on the ferry and do the round trip.
It’s a great way to get a different aspect from the water.
Other activities
There are so many sporting activities to do. Stand Up Paddling, swimming, sailing, bush walking, bike riding and more.
Simply walking along the promenade later in the day is wonderful as buskers line the wide pavement entertaining children and tourists. Grab an icecream and slowly meander long.
There is an art gallery, library with an exhibition hall beneath it, museum, aquarium and more.
It is the perfect place for a weekend or a week. Relax, drift and enjoy.
Potager is a delightful surprise hidden beyond the country suburb of Bilambil south of the Gold Coast.
Established in 2006 by Pete and Gareth with a grand vision to grow and source local food – served with exuberant intent. They nailed it!
Fast track to now and the vision lives on and is evident in every dish made and served. It’s a special part of the dream and the intent is certainly evident in the attention to detail, amazing menu and a relaxing venue.
Unfortunately one of the partners passed away in 2019 but everyone is happy and committed in his spirit.
On our visit we are met by a beautiful rustic home set amongst an enlivened field with a seductive edible garden.
The staff are all very competent and eager to say hello. The ethos of the restaurant/community is to support local including the staff.
The views over the valley are delightful and the wine list substantial.
We are with a few friends and cocktails are ordered.
For entree we share the fair game, wild venison carpaccio, pickled plum, mushroom, tarragon pesto, lemon myrtle cracker.
Wild venison carpaccio with pickled plum
My main course didn’t sound that much on the menu but was delicious with lots of subtle and Peruvian sudado de pescado(fish stew). Whilst the menu changes depending on what is in season and available the stew is always available. I will be going back for the fish stew for sure. Warming, nourishing and flavours full of the depth of the sea.
The fish stew is to die for
It is one of the dishes designed and kept as a tribute. I really rate the fish stew but would go so far as to recommend everything on the menu. My friends have the duck which melts in your mouth whilst my partner has local caught fish which was so well cooked.
Succulent duck
What I love most about Potager is the local grown vegetables used with every dish. It is like a blessing from the planet to your plate.
Thank you so much guys, we will be back again soon,
Finally I have had to resign myself to the fact that today I can only squeeze in a massage and snorkel at most.
As Western though patterns and chasing leaving my body, so does stress.
I feel myself decompressing like a tension chamber that has become unaccustomed to it’s own internal pressure – in actual fact using it for fuel to chase down more business. I need to step back and I have.
Yesterday I jumped on a plane to Bali with a small back pack, some face masks to deliver to Solemen ( A charity I support here) and little else. I had a sense that escaping to Nusa Lembogan would provide me with my next life lessons, poignant and gentle as Mother Bali delivers, so headed for Sanur to catch a ferry.
There are plenty of ferry companies that cross the 45 minute stretch all day. No need to book ahead and it shouldn’t cost more than 400 rupiah return.
I had to wait a while for mine, but I have learned that the waiting is part of Bali unravelling you from what you know, to where you need to be.
I relish in the wait.
With no accommodation booked, I figure that I could do something about it while the ferry is coming. Incredibly I secure a room in a hut that is truly magic and I feel so incredibly grateful to have been directed here.
A generous local drove me to the villas and would not accept any money for the trip. It sounds naive but I know the favour will be returned one day.
My digs for the night are out of this world – incredible views, and I feel I have arrived at the cusp of heaven and earth.
I settle in, have some mandatory spring rolls, a gin and tonic then go exploring.
It is a full moon and the night light makes for easy walking to Dream Bay.
Today i will explore more and post more tomorrow.
My creative flow is back and I feel alive again. Thank you Mother Bali.
If you like a wine or cocktail I think the tasting experiences are a must.
On the cruise I am doing there are a few days at sea which means forced rest and recouperation. I take this part of my life very seriously and aside from writing travel blogs, dipping in and out of the spa, I will always sign up for a few drinking experiences.
The wine tasting one is fantastic.
Wine tasting course on board the P & O Dawn Princes
So often in life I feel wine is drunk not enjoyed. The wine tasting enables you to thoroughly enjoy the true experience of wine – the joi de vie, the elixir of the Gods. I love wine so slowing down to have some one walk me through each quality and aspect of the wine, the colour, the aroma, the palette and to tell me the story about the wine maker and his intent on creating the wine is like attending a liquid art gallery.
The ship often shares one or two high end bottles which are beautiful to enjoy. I highly rate the wine tasting, the random people you meet at your table and the funny staff.
A different liquid experience and equally as fun is the cocktail mixing hour. For a modest sum you can make 4 delicious cocktails , have some fun and consume them all!
I found it very enlightening and learned that you can infuse your own vodkas with anything from chillis, to fruit to chocolate eclairs! I also discovered that many cocktails made behind the bar include sugar syrup and explained many so called “hangovers” that hadn’t made sense in the past – now I know they were sugar crashes.
We made an expresso martini, a humming bird, a caprioska and a chocolate one….
I am wooed into the this restaurant perched on the corner of Piazza Campo De Fiori by Zac.
Located on the edge of Campo de Fiori there is plenty to watch and day dream at.
There are a steady stream of restaurant guests, coming, refuelling and marching back into the hustle and bustle of central Roma.
There is a really great vibe around these markets. They are more a tourist market but serving a lot of fresh food produce, flowers and wines.
The piazza is very typical of Roman courtyards. The action is in the middle, with a circumference of shops, typically cucinas and restaurants.
The cobble stoned pavement gives an uneven edge that reminds you with each step of the hundreds of years of people walking the same steps as you. I love it. Tactile and real.
I chose to sit for awhile, film the chefs out the back and paint.
The guys in the kitchen are awesome and treat me to the insider passions of an Italian restaurant.
Even better they make me a dish that isn’t on the menu.
It is a seafood extravaganza, including a whole fish which is served to my table sealed in foil. The pasta, being central Roma, is amazing and melts in my mouth.
I have a wonderful couple of hours at this restaurant. The location is good, the pricing similar to anywhere else in central room and the seafood delicious.
The bus gives you a good lay out of the land, and takes you to key points.
The audio (in many different languages explains the history of the Monagese, the Monach, the grand prix and takes you to heaps of fun venues.
I have been to Monte Carlo a few times but this is the first time to the Musee l’ Oceanigraphy. You know thinking I had seen all the aquariums in the world!
This was amazing.
Patting sharks
Patting sharks.
Incredible coral reef fish.
A turtle called Rani.
The jelly fish display is wonderful.
You can visit the Musee and Palace by foot by simply walking up the hill, or stopping off on the on and off bus.
I love the walk up to the palace, it weaves along the dramatic coast line and brings you closer to the wonderful area that it really is.
Today I am keen to do one thing – give Prince Albert one of my paintings, but visiting the musee and palace become a wonderful distraction and experience.
The Palace (home of the Grimaldis) is a world famous landmark. For over 500 years the family have lived in the castle which is also a palace. You can take a tour through the palace and see where Louis the King lived and how they experienced life. I was quite overwhelmed with the grandeuse of the palace, the gifts other countries had given to the family over the years and the fact it is still functional today.
Still used for entertaining and formal ocassions you walk along the marble tiles where many world dignaturies have walked, brushing along the curtains as they do. It brings home to me that we are all one species, one people.
I am informed to contact the soldiers, to pass my modest gift to Prince Albert. They take me to his body guards who sign me in and then graciously take me gift. The assure me that Princes Charlene and Prince Albert will receive my paintings and note.A note that read simply as a piece of gratitude. Monaco is one of the safest places in the world, with CCTV on every corner, the whole town is under surveillance. As a women, I appreciate the safety it offers.
After visiting the palace I wander to the Oceanicgeographic not really expecting much to be honest. I few weeks ago I had been to Seaworld on the Gold Coast, which is somewhere I have been going to for years with the kids. Seaworld has a wonderful aquarium and interactive pools with animals that I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be impressed. Well, I didn’t have any expectations.I was blown away!
Turn out the musee is very interactive – you can pat sharks, get close to large tanks and the jelly fish display is surreal.
I discovered many fish I had never seen before, was excited by the jelly fish display and got to talk with Rani the turtle (yes I talk with turtles)!.
It is a wonderful aquarium and museum and I think any visit to Monaco, especially if you have 2 days should include a visit.
And to my painting for Prince Albert – I am waiting an email from him, saying he has received it. I would dearly love to draw the royal family, or draw one of their favorite scenes and have it hung in Monte Carlo. Or maybe i will be their naturopath if not artist.
When we grew up in Hobart, The Duke of Wellington, now known as “The Duke” was a funky drinking hole. I believe it still is but today I decided to try out their counter meals.
The hotel has a welcoming vibe, great art on the walls and a fire side for winter. I really like it.
Built in 1846, the interior still displays the old sandstone bricks and grand arch ways. Long wooden beams help bring the old rustic design to be compatible with a modern hotel style.
Not over worked, not hundreds of choices, just something in each area.
I have the Scottsdale Pork Belly, which is slow cooked with a delicious glaze (chocolate maple glaze). It is served with four Tasmanian scallops nestled in pumpkin mash and Artichoke puree. The dish works really well and is a perfect lunch before we head to the cinema just down the road.
Accompanying my yummy meal is a Tassie pinot grigio, Devil’s Corner.
My son has a wood fired cooked pizza we he said was amazing – and judging by the pace that he hoovered it in, I imagine it was amazing.
